1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to waterfowl decoys in general and to motion waterfowl decoys in particular.
2. Prior Art
The use of decoys that move are well known in the field of waterfowling. Hunters have long used simple devices such as strings tied to floating decoys to cause the decoys to bob and move. Flying birds notice the moving decoy more readily and at a greater distance than they would a stationary decoy. Moreover, the motion of the decoy in the water generates ripples. Like the motion of the decoy itself, the ripples also catch the eye of passing birds, and a rippled surface looks more realistic than a glassy smooth one, since a flock of waterfowl will disturb the surface as they dabble, feed, and preen.
Another relatively simple motion decoy is the flag decoy. These devices are simple waterfowl shaped flags on a long pole. The flag is waved at distant birds. The motion of the flag is used to catch the birds"" attention. Like all the other decoys described herein, the flag-type decoys are typically used in conjunction with calling-making sounds that mimic the natural calls of the waterfowl.
At a distance, the flag resembles the motion of bird landing. However, as the birds approach, the flag must be put down, as the motion is not realistic enough to be used with birds in close proximity to the hunter. Additionally, flag decoys are not particularly well suited to hunting over water. As the birds approach, the flag decoy either has to be hidden standing up, which can be difficult in view of their length, or put down in the water, resulting in a wet flag that does not flutter as realistically when the next flight approaches. Consequently, these decoys are used primarily for hunting in dry fields.
A slightly more complicated motion decoy is the wind sock decoy. These decoys are, as their name suggests, wind socks that are shaped and often painted to look like waterfowl. An example can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,611,421. The wind sock decoys are mounted on shafts that are placed in the ground. The tops of the shafts are provided with heads that resemble the head of a duck or goose. As the wind fills the wind sock, it causes the decoy to do two things. First, the wind socks spin on their shafts so that the decoys are facing into the wind, the natural way for waterfowl to face. A headwind allows birds to take flight more quickly, and most waterfowl will naturally adopt this position when resting or feeding in order to rapidly take to the wing should danger threaten. Second, the wind filling the socks causes the decoys to move or shimmy, again with the effect of catching the eye of distant birds. Although these decoys work very, well in certain conditions, they perform poorly in others. Wind sock decoys do not require a great deal of wind, but they do not provide any motion in completely calm conditions. High wind situations can be equally problematic as a fresh breeze can cause a wind sock to move very vigorously, giving the unrealistic impression of a flock of geese who had too much coffee that morning. The wind sock decoys also work best when deployed in a dry field. When used in water, the fabric socks droop in the water in calm conditions and may become wet, preventing them from rising in a light wind. Additionally, waterfowl are often pursued in inclimate weather; and rain, freezing rain, sleet, or snow falling on wind sock decoys can also weigh the socks down, preventing them from rising in the breeze.
Similar to the wind sock is the whirligig, an example of which can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,862,619. This device features a decoy mounted on a post and having a set of free spinning xe2x80x9cwings.xe2x80x9d Sometimes, the wings are used without the decoy body. When the wind blows, the wings spin. One side of the wings are typically painted dark and the other white so that the spinning motion resembles the flapping wings of a duck or goose. This device works like the others mentioned above in that it attracts birds from afar with the motion of its spinning wings. It works equally well over water as on land. However, most whirligig type decoys require a breeze to operate at all. Additionally, the whirligig adds no motion to the surface when used over water. Finally, it continues to move when waterfowl approach. This is an unnatural look, as the decoy continues to hover in place without ever setting or more strangely still, flaps its wings continuously while sitting on the water. Although these devices are often very effective early in the season, waterfowl that have been hunted appear to learn to associate a bird that flaps and flaps but never lands with hunters and are known to flare away from such devices, particularly as the season progresses.
Very similar to the whirligig discussed above are mechanical flapping decoys, an example of which is contained in U.S. Pat. No. 6,170,188. These decoys also have a set of spinning wings on a shaft. However, instead of being wind driven, they are motor driven-typically by small electric motors. They work in substantially the same way as the whirligig, except they are not dependant upon the wind. Otherwise, their drawbacks are the same. However, the electric version typically costs substantially more than its wind driven cousin. The problem of the whirligig continuing to run as the birds approach can also be addressed in the motor driven version by adding a remote control device; however, this also adds to the expense of the decoy.
Still another type of motion decoy are those with moving body parts, such as that illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 5,231,780. In these decoys, a string is typically attached to the decoy""s wing or head. By pulling on the string, the decoy can be made to turn its head and/or raise its wings. The head typically twists on a shaft while the wings turn on a shaft back and forth across an arc rather than spinning like the wings of the whirligig type decoys. The principle drawback with these decoys is the degree of motion they provide. A turn of the decoy""s head or a flagging of the decoy""s wings, may prove especially realistic when the birds are quite close. However, such minimal amounts of movement are not likely to be noticed by high flying birds that one is attempting to attract. Further, the decoys disclosed in the ""780 Patent are typically used on land and are not designed to disturb the surface of the water in imitation of an active duck or goose.
In view of the foregoing shortcomings in the prior art, a motion decoy that meets the following objectives is desired.
It is an object of the invention to provide a waterfowl decoy that moves.
It is another object of the invention to provide a waterfowl decoy that imitates the flapping of wings.
It is still another object of the invention to provide a waterfowl decoy that moves without need of the wind.
It is still another object of the invention to provide a waterfowl decoy that moves without need of a motor.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide a waterfowl decoy that will disturb the surface of the water on which the decoy is floating.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide a waterfowl decoy whose movement may be controlled by a human operator.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide a waterfowl decoy whose motion may be stopped as waterfowl approach the decoy.
The invention comprises a waterfowl decoy provided with a pair of wings mounted on an axle. The axle is biased against rotation in one direction, typically with surgical tubing or a spring. It is also provided with a pull cord that is attached to the axle. The pull cord should be wound about the axle so that when tension is applied to the pull cord, the axle will be rotated as the pull cord is unwound. This will cause the wings to spin. However, the direction in which the axle rotates when tension is applied to the pull cord should be the direction against which the axle is biased, such that rotating the axle by pulling the string will cause the tension on the axle to increase. Thus, when the tension on the pull cord is released, the tension on the axle from the biasing force will cause the axle and the wings to spin in the opposite direction. This will rewind the string around the axle, readying the decoy for another pull.
The underside of the wings are preferably white while the top side of the wings are painted a dull color such a green or brown. As the wings spin, the white side flashes in a strobelike fashion, giving the appearance of a duck or goose flapping its wings.
In the preferred embodiment, the decoy is a floating decoy or is mounted to a floating frame. In this embodiment, the decoy is secured to a stake, anchor, or other relatively immobile object. If the decoy is not so secured, pulling on the pull cord will simply draw the decoy to the user rather than causing the wings to spin. However, if the decoy is anchored to a fixed object, pulling on the pull cord will cause the decoy to move forward until the anchor line becomes taut. If the pull cord is given a sharp jerk, the decoy will splash the water and create ripples as it moves forward and then spin its wings as the pull cord is unwound from the axle. This will create the impression of a bird that has just landed in the water. Then, when the pull cord is released, the wings will spin again, in imitation of the common habit of waterfowl to stretch and dry their wings after they land.